A Story Shared by Punkin’s Owner
Punkin’s bird memorial figurine was created to remember a tiny cockatiel who brought an enormous amount of love, comfort and companionship to her family.
“Punkin was my second cockatiel. She was very precious, loving and loved to be held, or to sit on your shoulder, preen and sleep.
My mum absolutely loved her. Punkin was always with my mum. She loved millet and baths.
After my dad passed away, Punkin was a great comfort to both my mum and me.
Punkin was later diagnosed with liver cancer and passed away in 2013. My mother passed away in 2014.
Punkin was such a sweet little girl, with so much love to give.”
This is one of the real stories shared with us while creating a bird memorial figurine for a customer.
At Kithkins, we have created many personalised figurines of cockatiels, parrots and other much-loved pet birds. As we create more of these little birds, we are also fortunate to hear more of the touching stories behind them.
One thing has particularly stayed with us: these tiny birds can bring far more love, companionship and comfort than many people realise.
A Little Bird Can Become Part of the Family
Punkin was much more than a cockatiel.
After her owner’s father passed away, Punkin was there for her mum and for her owner. She would sit on their shoulders, preen, fall asleep, enjoy her millet and happily take her baths.
They may sound like ordinary little moments.
But when we lose someone we love, it is often these everyday moments that we miss the most.
This is why many people choose a cockatiel memorial, bird memorial or personalised bird figurine as a way of keeping the memory of a much-loved pet bird close.
“Be Careful – Don’t Let the Bird Fly Away!”
Later, after Punkin’s owner received the figurine we had created for her, she sent us another email.
She told us:
“That is my bird.”
She placed Punkin’s figurine in the entrance hall of her home. When family members walked past and caught sight of her, they would sometimes exclaim:
“Be careful – don’t let the bird fly away!”
When we read this, we could immediately picture the scene.
A little bird who had been gone for so many years was suddenly back in the family home in a familiar form.
For just a moment, when someone caught sight of Punkin in the hallway, it almost felt as though she were there again.
Perhaps this is one of the most meaningful things about a 3D pet memorial figurine.
It cannot replace a pet we have lost, and it cannot turn back time.
But every now and then, it can bring back that familiar feeling and remind us of the life and love we once shared.
We hope Punkin can continue to stay close to her owner and family in this little way for many years to come.
Creating Punkin’s Bird Memorial Figurine
Birds are one of the types of pet figurines we create most often at Kithkins.
Using customers’ photographs, we regularly create personalised bird memorial figurines of cockatiels, parrots and many other beloved pet birds.
Birds require exceptional attention to detail.
So much of a bird’s character can be found in the smallest features – the slight tilt of its head, the way it stands, the layering of its feathers, the texture of its wings and the subtle variations in its colouring.
At Kithkins, we pay particular attention to these details.
Our aim is not simply to recreate the same species of bird, but to capture the individual bird its owner remembers and loves.
Because to their family, it is never simply “a cockatiel”.
It is Punkin.
It is Daisy.
It is a family member with a name, a personality, little habits and a story of their own.
A bird memorial figurine created from photographs can help preserve some of those familiar details in a physical form that can stay in the home.
My Own Brief Encounter with a Cockatiel
I have never actually owned a bird myself.
But around ten years ago, I was standing in my garden when a beautiful little cockatiel suddenly flew down and landed on my shoulder.
I was surprised and felt incredibly lucky. Someone told me that having a bird choose to land on your shoulder was a sign of good luck.
I gave her some millet and water.
But I didn’t keep her.
At the time, I thought perhaps she belonged to the sky and to freedom, and that she would find her own way to wherever she wanted to go.
Later, my neighbour told me that cockatiels are usually companion birds and that being alone outdoors could be dangerous for them.
That was when I started to wonder: had she actually escaped from someone’s home? Was there an owner somewhere desperately looking for her?
That happened ten years ago, but I still think about that little bird from time to time.
I wonder where she went after leaving my garden.
Did she find her original owner?
Did somebody else find her and give her a home?
Or did she somehow find a safe place of her own?
I will never know the answer.
But after hearing so many stories about beloved pet birds through Kithkins, I understand something now that I didn’t fully appreciate then.
The little cockatiel that landed on my shoulder may not have been simply a bird passing by.
She may have been someone’s much-loved family member, and someone may have been desperately searching for her.
Keeping Their Little Memories Close
We have created many pet bird memorials, and through them we have heard so many stories about love, companionship and loss.
Punkin’s story is just one of them.
She has been gone for many years, but the memories of her sitting on Mum’s shoulder, enjoying her millet and baths, and bringing comfort to the family when they needed it most have never really disappeared.
And now, a little figurine of Punkin is back in the family home.
Quietly sitting in the entrance hall.
Every now and then, still making someone instinctively say:
“Be careful – don’t let the bird fly away!”
What a lovely image that is.
Perhaps that is what a memorial is really about.
We cannot stop time, but a bird memorial figurine can offer another way to keep the little lives we loved close to us – in our homes, in our stories and in our memories.